Pope Francis as Peacemaker

One powerful image is the September 7, 2013 day of prayer and fasting for peace in Syria, the Middle East and the World, culminating in a four-hour vigil of prayer for Syria… his words:

“How I wish that all men and women of goodwill would look to the Cross if only for a moment! There, we can see God’s reply: violence is not answered by violence, death is not answered with the language of death.”

As my brother Gerard Whelan, SJ commented: “when the Pope arrived it was like a friend and neighbor thanking us for having accepted an invitation to visit him at his home.”